Davidson - need advise for holiday dose reduction

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

It’s that time where I have to make some decisions with Davidson’s dose.

I increased him to 3.75u a few days ago and will take him back to 3.5 tomorrow morning at 06:00 amps...I plan on keeping him at that dose until Thursday and then perhaps reducing him again to 3.25 for when I’m away in order that the pet sitter is safe and no chance for a hypo.

We can see what Davidson does with the 3.5 over the next few couple of days as maybe this reduction will boost his numbers up and he won’t need a second reduction.

Any suggestions or comments on this??

Thanks
Shawna

 

[Wendy&Neko]

What day do you leave?

 

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

May 10 16:00 hrs. From home to get to airport.

 

[Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey]

Is your petsitter very experienced with shooting insulin? I've found it works better to give them a dose to shoot that's on a line whenever possible (as opposed to a .25 or .75). Failing that, I recommend drawing up a dose with colored liquid so they can match their dose to it.

How often will the sitter come by, or is he/she staying at your house? If there will be no mid-cycle testing, a lower dose is best - better a day too high than a minute too low.

 

[Juliet]

Is your petsitter very experienced with shooting insulin? I've found it works better to give them a dose to shoot that's on a line whenever possible (as opposed to a .25 or .75). Failing that, I recommend drawing up a dose with colored liquid so they can match their dose to it.

How often will the sitter come by, or is he/she staying at your house? If there will be no mid-cycle testing, a lower dose is best - better a day too high than a minute too low.

I've always been confused with that expression "better a day too high than a moment too low". Both are equally dangerous as too high and you're in danger of DKA.

 

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

Thanks for the replies, and I guess I made an assumption that those who would reply were those that have been following Davidson. Therefore I didn't put in all the "pet-sitter" details as this was done on his previous threads. In short, my pet sitter is living here full time and other then 4-5 training sessions she had NO previous experience. She is okay with testing and has given insulin under my supervision and other then a fur shot last session a s few days ago, she will be okay shooting him. That does not mean she is experienced nor understands the dosing and how it works with increases or decreases, how depot works and responds, etc...........she has everything you can imagine written on big notes, photo copies and colour filled needles to help her out - I've missed nothing.......but that was not the question I had.

I've reduced Davidson's dose by .25 this morning knowing full well it will increase his BG numbers which puts him in a SAFE zone.

I plan to see how this reduced dowse works with Davidson and on May 10 apms will possibly do another reduction. I DO NOT WANT DAVIDSON TO COME CLOSE TO A HYPO, the pet sitter is living here, but is not here 24 hrs a day nor do I expect her to wake up every few hrs like we do for our "own" cats........I hope she will test 2-3 times in each cycle at +2 or +3, +4 and +6.........she will be texting me all test numbers and I will if and when possible with wifi enter these onto the SS and a thread here. It may be inconsistent here, but I will see the test results daily and know first hand how Davidson is.

I think this dose may work at 3.5 and I may not have to reduce..........

Any thoughts for those with experience in pet travel who have followed Davidson?

Thanks,

Shawna

 

[Juliet]

I find that too. People reply who haven't always been following and don't know the facts already covered. I keep having to repeat myself.

 

[Stacy & Asia]

It just happens that sometimes the people with the right experience to give you the advice you’re seeking aren’t always the ones that follow your thread on a day to day. It doesn’t make the information less relevant and yes, you may have to repeat yourself a bit if they don’t have the time to go far back in your condo, but that’s okay. The more opinions and experience you have to base your decision, the better, right?

I haven’t done any traveling with my diabetic kitty, so I don’t have that experience to draw on. So take my 2 cents with that in mind. He doesn’t seem to be prone to ketones and judging by all of his data, he is really good at staying relatively flat. My suspicion is that when you reduce to 3.5 or even 3.25, he might adapt and stay relatively in the green zone, it won’t be the same as he was going up to that dose. You’ll have to see how 3.5 plays out and use your best judgement. Unfortunately you don’t have any data of what a skipped shot looks like (which is awesome that it’s never been needed, but data is lacking). I would think about picking a number where assuming your pet sitter can’t get ahold of you in time, would be a no shot number just to be safe. 60? 70? Especially if she is not able to titrate the dose.

Will he have access to food regularly and at the times you have normally been feeding him day and night? Autofeeder? That needs to be a consideration too. Maybe he surfs with regular increments of food, but going without meals at those same times could cause the numbers to go down or go up. Keeping conditions as close to how you have done them would be ideal, excluding the amount of testing you do, of course.

 

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

Haha, sure he missed a shot a few days ago with the “fur shot”....yeah no messed up data even 4 yrs ago. His eating patterns will be the same and like last time Davidson surfs pretty good at his numbers and recovers nicely from bounces. She will be home most of the time, gone for max 2 hrs at a time but here majority of the time.

Yes, I am aware we are all over the world here, which is why I appreciate everyone’s suggestions.......

I was also thinking of a NO shoot number of 60-70 as well.....see what he does today and tomorrow on the reduced dose as maybe he won’t need another reduction?

She will always be here from amps to +5 , then may go out for a couple hrs, would feed 1/4 can which be grazes at, return mid to late afternoon and always be here at PMPS and stay for the night. I do not expect her to wake up middle of the night to test unless his last test was very low - then she knows to test.

I am always a phone call away regardless of how much in costs or what time it is.......with the 7 hr time change I should be able to be on line here mid day North American time.......I will make it work, he’s my priority......

*** can someone suggest what the BEST test times would be based on his SS.....ie, +3 and + 5.....then she will be here for those times in am and pm, she sees Davidson’s patterns and will have his journal to go by.....obviously I’m more nervous and anxious then she is........

 

[saltycat]

I have not been following Davidson, but something that worked well for my sitter was using texts to convey numbers. This gave both of us peace of mind since the sitter didn't want to mess up and I worried about Mr. Unpredictable(my furball).

I see the time difference so assuming you will be out of the country. Whatsapp works very well for free international texts or calls if you have wifi/data available. A printout of the hypo sticky and phone/directions to a vet were also left out for the sitter. It can be hard to think straight when panicking a little.

+3 looks like a good time, he is usually bottoming out close to then and if he does drop more, it is not much. I don't think a +5 would be necessary especially with a vacation dose. A +8 or +9 would let her see if he is rising or falling when it comes time for PMPS, I see he's pulled a late drop occasionally.
I'm a little leery on the no shoot number, but it looks like he handles those lower amps/pmps and doesn't drop much, if the sitter shot that I would be more inclined to get a +5 to be safe.

Have a safe trip and try not to stress to much, I had to travel as well and always anxiously waited for the text with his numbers.

 

[Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey]

Thanks for the replies, and I guess I made an assumption that those who would reply were those that have been following Davidson.

I beg your pardon. I was under the impression you wanted suggestions from people that have experience with leaving their cats with pet sitters. I wasn't aware there were further qualifications that I didn't meet. Sorry to waste your time. And mine.

 

[Jill & Alex (GA)]

Thanks for the replies, and I guess I made an assumption that those who would reply were those that have been following Davidson. Therefore I didn't put in all the "pet-sitter" details as this was done on his previous threads.

Here's the thing about pet-sitter details...
Even those who are following may forget or worse yet, mix-up your cat with another. It's easy to do considering anyone who has been around for more than a year or two has seen many, many cats come through the doors. Thank you for re-psting the details.

increased him to 3.75u a few days ago and will take him back to 3.5 tomorrow morning at 06:00 amps...I plan on keeping him at that dose until Thursday and then perhaps reducing him again to 3.25 for when I’m away in order that the pet sitter is safe and no chance for a hypo.

We can see what Davidson does with the 3.5 over the next few couple of days as maybe this reduction will boost his numbers up and he won’t need a second reduction.

Any suggestions or comments on this??

I like your reasoning. I have something else for your consideration when deciding on a dose... most cats do not eat as well as they usually do/go off their food some when their caregiver is gone... even when they're remaining in their own home. It's just one of those things that you have to consider may happen while you're gone. Unfortunately, there's no way of knowing what will happen or the extent of it happening in advance.

I was also thinking of a NO shoot number of 60-70 as well.....see what he does today and tomorrow on the reduced dose as maybe he won’t need another reduction?

Again, sound reasoning. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably opt for a little higher no shoot number. Maybe 90 - 100. I preferred to get Alex back on track when I got home because I knew I could push the envelope safely, but that's just me.

*** can someone suggest what the BEST test times would be based on his SS.....ie, +3 and + 5.....

+3 and +5 sounds good for now with the understanding she may have to stick around for a bit if the +5 is low.

I am always a phone call away regardless of how much in costs or what time it is.......with the 7 hr time change I should be able to be on line here mid day North American time.......I will make it work, he’s my priority......

This could be extremely helpful... especially if Davidson decides to change things up on your sitter.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

Not to belabor a point, but all of those people who regularly follow Davidson are volunteers here, have times when life draws them away from the Board, or they need to step away for personal reasons. They may not have experience to draw on to answer your question. The person you berated is one of the more experienced members here and she opted to step up and respond.

IMHO, it’s incumbent on the person who is asking a question to summarize the relevant information or provide a link to where the salient facts can be found. Even during the period when I could devote literally hours each day to the Board, there were a lot of cats and too many details to juggle. No one wants to provide misinformation nor do we want to have to dig through days of condos to find information. If having to decide how to spend my time, I will forfeit slogging through days of condos for helping many more people, if you bash someone, you decrease the likelihood that they will come back and the person who detours around your condo may be the person highly equipped to lend a hand.

My 2 cents.

 

[Jill & Alex (GA)]

if you bash someone...

Sigh, maybe it's just me, but this doesn't sound like "bashing"... not to me:

Thanks for the replies, and I guess I made an assumption that those who would reply were those that have been following Davidson. Therefore I didn't put in all the "pet-sitter" details as this was done on his previous threads.

This has sure been one heck of a long day...
good-night all!

 

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

I beg your pardon. I was under the impression you wanted suggestions from people that have experience with leaving their cats with pet sitters. I wasn't aware there were further qualifications that I didn't meet. Sorry to waste your time. And mine.

Whoa!! .......who said I was referring to YOU??? I wasn't ever now or in the past singling anyone out - always generalizing and asking for input not from just YOU or ANYONE else in particular, but as a GROUP. If you take things personally, sorry for you but perhaps your interpretation of what is written needs re-evaluating?

Not to belabor a point, but all of those people who regularly follow Davidson are volunteers here, have times when life draws them away from the Board, or they need to step away for personal reasons. They may not have experience to draw on to answer your question. The person you berated is one of the more experienced members here and she opted to step up and respond.

IMHO, it’s incumbent on the person who is asking a question to summarize the relevant information or provide a link to where the salient facts can be found. Even during the period when I could devote literally hours each day to the Board, there were a lot of cats and too many details to juggle. No one wants to provide misinformation nor do we want to have to dig through days of condos to find information. If having to decide how to spend my time, I will forfeit slogging through days of condos for helping many more people, if you bash someone, you decrease the likelihood that they will come back and the person who detours around your condo may be the person highly equipped to lend a hand.

My 2 cents.

Again, maybe my intellect isn't quite like many on here, but I have never nor would I "bash" someone publicly, I'd send them a private message and then trust me - they would know exactly what I felt.

FWIT - I too have helped numerous on here and elsewhere, none of you or many of us have met nor know anything about each other, so for anyone to make statements about someone due to perhaps "their" misinterpretation of what is written is unconscionable. Some on here need the advice and need to be walked through various stages of dealing with this, others like myself look for suggestions or opinions of others and then assess what they get and make decisions on their own.

I follow some cats, never look at others and it's nothing personal and I have all the time in the world. If someone doesn't like my suggestions, so be it - I'm not forcing them to read nor do anything I suggest. No different with anyone who posts to my threads - this is a public forum and WORDS can easily be miss-understood especially since there are numerous levels of education and intellect on here, some who are simple to those who are scholars, the stressed out type to the cool and calm, and just like our cats when we refer to them as ECID - well guess what, so are people!! So relax, sit back and take a chill pill and understand that putting words into someone else's mouth is really asinine when all they did was ask a question.

Ahhh, welcome to public forums. LOL. I have always thanked those who replied as I will again now - THANK YOU ALL and to Jill who provided some insight to exactly what I was looking for as it appears she understood what I was looking for with my post.

It's been a long day alright, about 18 hrs now so it's time for bed.........well, maybe after a little Seinfeld to lighten up the aura.

Davidson says thanks, as it's all about him!

 

[Tricia Cinco(GA) & Harvey]

Shawna,

I have never known you to be unkind or rude, so I'm sorry if I misinterpreted what you said. As you pointed out, the written word can be deceiving. Not knowing the tone something is said in can lead to misinterpretation. When I read your comments, especially the last line, I felt that you were saying you were annoyed at having to repeat yourself and that you only wanted input from those completely up to date with Davidson. The post that followed reinforced that.

Everyone that shares their thoughts on condos here does so with the best of intentions. Sometimes we forget that the important thing here is the kitty and his or her well-being. Thanks for reminding us.

 

[Shawna & Davidson (GA)]

Hey..........no worries, We are all in this together. Remember, at any time WE are all stressed, frustrated and maybe even a bit upset or angry because we have to do this stuff. We look back how great it was when out kitties didn't get the DX and how much free time we had, let alone extra $$. However, somehow some VERY WONDERFUL people put this site together and it brought us all here to learn experience and share our knowledge and compassion we have for our cats.

I know personally how difficult it can be reading threads and trying to comprehend what someone is trying to say - I'm Dyslexic so it's even harder, LOL...........but in the end someone out there will understand and eventually we get the reply or answer we wanted or hoped to get.

Today is another day with our loved kitties and already Davidson is in the blue, but is is what it is.............at the end of the day Davidson, Harvey and all the kitties in GA land are all that mattered............us human types or Beans (I don't like that name) are merely support systems for our kitties, haha.............but we LOVE THEM!!

Have a great day to all............Cyber Friends!